Help Me Select a Wagon

Comments

A friend of mine was shopping luxury SUVs for a dog-mobile and ended up with a Range Rover Sport for the same reason - the rear window pops up seperately. His dog can stay inside but get fresh air with the top half open.

Late model Focus has lots of room good mpg and is inexpensive. Corolla wagon is extremely reliable and cheap, but I think they stopped in the late 90's. Vibe is an excellent choice and since Pontiac is going under they are real cheap - could almost get a new one.

Mazda 5 has a ton of room for a wagon gas mileage starts to suffer.

I would probably stay from a VW that is old enough to be under 10k.

Unfortunately small wagons are shunned in this country despite being the most practical of all body styles. Otherwise something like an Accord Wagon would be a perfect choice, but they have not made those since the mid 90's - might find one in good condition though.

I was just starting to lean towards a small wagon-maybe a matrix or a vibe. ive read horrible things about focus. going to see a matrix in person to make sure the cargo area with the seats down is big enough for me.

Anyone know if the matrix/vibe is a reliable car? How many miles is too many?

This thread doesn't seem like it gets much traffic lately, but here goes. I'm considering downsizing from a minivan to a larger wagon, mostly for affordability. Not that the Odyssey I have now is expensive, but if I can save a little more, I might. Lease is due in 5 months. Problem is, there aren't many "affordable" wagons out there now, they are all crossovers, suv variations, etc. I remember when Honda made an Accord wagon, now it has the Crosstour which is like $34k. I have a 2011 Camry which is nice, but the closest thing is the Venza, which again is quite a bit more.

So, do I stick with another minivan (I have 3 kids, 2 elementary school 1 in middle schoo), or look for something else in the $25k or under range, that leases well? For example, my Camry LE is $230/month, nothing down. I'd be happy with the equivalent Camry wagon in the same price range. Maybe a Subaru Outback?